Fool Me Once
by Sapphiregirl
Summary: Set between Lightspeed and Titans Together. Kid Flash is in a perilous position and Jinx has to make a choice. It's not because she likes him. It's because she wants to win. At least, that's what she keeps telling herself. Jinx X KF
1. Chapter 1

_Disclaimer: _I don't own any of the characters from Teen Titans. I'm just playing in DC's sandbox.

_An:_ This is my first attempt at a Jinx/Kid Flash story. The plot bunny just attacked me out of nowhere a couple weeks ago and I spent a few days scrawling it all down. It's set between Lightspeed and Titans Together, a kind of what-if? that sheds a bit of illumination on Jinx's relationship (or lack thereof) with Kid Flash and her reasons and motives for eventually working with the Titans.

Thanks go to Le Bibliothecaire and Red Lasbelin for beta-reading.

* * *

**Fool Me Once... **

**Chapter 1**

* * *

_"You vill not feed him, you vill not speak to him, and I trust you are holding him in a Level 4 containment field?"_

The memory floated out of the dim recesses of his mind; Madame Rouge's words to Jinx the day the Hive Five thought they'd gotten him. A smile almost crossed his face. He loved getting under her skin, loved the look on her face when she realized she'd revealed much more than she had intended—

A sudden jolt of electricity, more powerful than the rest, traveled through him and his body shook violently. Wally West, usually known as Kid Flash, was in a bit of a jam. Quite a bit of a jam, actually, since the Level 4 containment field surrounding him prevented the use of his powers.

"Not so cocky now, are you?" a heavily-accented voice mocked. "There is no escape for you this time, Kid Flash."

He could barely make out the tall, imposing form through the bright haze of the containment field. He didn't know how long he'd been here—it felt like hours—but he wasn't sure how much more he could take. A spasm of pain lanced through him and he fought another wracking shudder. On top of everything else, his stomach was rumbling loudly—he'd need to eat something soon.

Unfortunately, Madame Rouge was not as naïve as the Hive Five had been. She knew all too well how to render him helpless and she was fully capable of doing so. Her approach had been a great deal more subtle this time around—so subtle, in fact, that he hadn't realized he was in a trap until it was too late. Much too late.

_The woman's arrogant,_ he thought numbly, _and she has a diabolical streak in her. Vengeful one, too. She didn't much like getting one-upped by me…or Jinx._

The containment field continued to pour jolts of energy into his body to keep him from moving and his muscle spasms grew worse. Though he refused to admit it, in the back of his mind he knew he wasn't going to be conscious much longer. And when he woke up—if he ever woke up—who knew where he would find himself?

"Foolish boy."

Kid Flash tried to raise his head but lacked the energy. He contented himself with directing a scowl towards the floor, trying desperately to fight off the wave of black hovering at the edges of his vision. _She's still there._ His head was beginning to pound.

"I vas not sure you vould fall for my leetle trick again, but you did." Madame Rouge chuckled, a throaty sound that frightened him more than the guttural way she pronounced her words. "I made a few changes, of course; othervise you might haff become suspicious and all my time and planning vould have been for nothing."

She paused, as if waiting for him to say something. When he did not reply, she continued, "You heroes are so gullible—so ready to trust." She huffed scornfully. "You haff brought this on yourself, you know. Haff fun." With a derisive laugh, she swept from the room. The lights went out and he heard a heavy metal door clang shut.

The worst of it was that she was right. He _had_ brought this on himself. He knew that—oh, yes, he knew. Madame Rouge was obviously an adaptable villainess and he fell for her new ploy hook, line, and sinker.

Sweat trickled down off the end of his nose as his head dropped another fraction of an inch, the droplets sizzling the instant they touched the containment field. Most serious villains knew his weaknesses—in particular the fact that he had to eat regularly to maintain his hyper energy. Madame Rouge, however, had found the one weakness she could best exploit: his heart.

Even he wasn't quite sure how it had happened. He didn't make it a habit to fall for villainesses, but there was something about Jinx that drew him from the moment he met her. Maybe it was the fact that the self-proclaimed mistress of bad luck was trying to find something good, maybe it was the fact that she didn't think things could be any different…or maybe it was just the fact that she was awfully cute when indignant. He didn't know.

Unfortunately, his infatuation was obvious—so obvious in fact, that Madame Rouge used it to her advantage in their last meeting. He didn't realize his subsequent attempts to keep an eye on Jinx had been noticed by anyone…but Rouge must have been watching her too. Or maybe, his tired brain faltered, maybe Jinx had truly disappeared and Madame Rouge's game of pretend had been going on much longer than he had thought.

_One thing's for sure,_ he thought, his shoulder muscles burning from keeping himself on his knees. _I'll never look at coffee the same way._ He blinked, trying to focus his vision. Okay, maybe that wasn't true. It probably wouldn't stop him from drinking it, but he'd definitely take a second or two to contemplate the matter.

The entire fiasco started with Jinx. _No, I take that back._ His lips curled in a mirthless smile. The entire fiasco actually started with his inability to stop dashing over to Jump City to see how she was doing. From there, everything had spiraled into a cascading disaster of epic proportions.

His conscience gave a little twinge. _Okay, fine._ Maybe it wasn't a 'disaster of epic proportions', but nobody knew he'd been kidnapped. At least, nobody knew unless he was being ransomed, which he doubted because it was far more likely that the Flash—or any of his friends—would break him out before they'd fork over money. Besides, if Madame Rouge was as smart as he thought she was, she wouldn't even consider handing a superhero his freedom just because she'd been given a lot of money, or the next Weapon of Doom, or makeup, or whatever it was that villains always wanted.

In essence, he was good and stuck.

Pink hair floated through his mind's eye and the darkness threatened to close in on him. In an effort to keep himself awake, he recalled the circumstances that had landed him in his containment field in the first place. Things were a little fuzzy at first, but they snapped back into crystal clear clarity.

He'd taken a detour and dashed through Jump City on his way home for lunch to make sure the Teen Titans didn't need any help. That was the excuse, anyway. The truth of the matter was that he was looking for Jinx. He hadn't been able to find her anywhere for the past couple weeks and he wanted to take another look. At this point, her disappearance—if she had in fact willingly disappeared—could mean one of several things.

A small corner of him…well, okay, a large part of him…hoped she'd decided to chuck the whole villainess thing. The thought filled him with a warm glow that only served to increase the speed with which he was zipping up and down the streets. And then he'd found her.

Alert for any trace of pink, he'd spotted her hair at once, though it wasn't done up in its usual gravity-defying horns. He didn't know what it looked like exactly, because he overshot the coffee shop where she was sitting and had to zip back. She was tucked away in a back corner up against a window, engrossed in the newspaper. More importantly, she hadn't noticed his entrance.

* * *

Unable to help the cocky grin that insisted on making his face its permanent home, Kid Flash slid into the seat across from Jinx. He ignored the surprised stares of the other patrons and leaned forward. "Whatchya reading?"

The newspaper she held lowered just far enough for her to get a look at him. "Oh, it's you." Her voice was completely flat.

"Aww, I'm flattered you remember me." A slight breeze ruffled the pages of the paper and then he was back, dangling a crimson rose in front of her face, one gloved hand splayed on the table. Situated as they were in the corner, no one could see what he was offering her. "Your enthusiasm is killing me," he deadpanned.

Jinx looked at the rose for a few seconds before taking it with the tips of two fingers and dropping it on the table. "What do you want?"

Kid Flash sprawled in the chair, perfectly at ease. "What, I can't talk to you now?" He was happy her eyes didn't flash when she narrowed them at him; he didn't want the chair broken even if he'd never actually hit the floor.

Carelessly, Jinx tossed the paper to the table. "I've gotta go." She rose in one swift, smooth movement and began to walk away.

"Wait!" Kid Flash's hand latched onto her wrist. She stared at him and he smiled easily, blue eyes warm. "I'll walk you home."

"I don't need—"

"Oh, come on. It's not like I don't know where you live anyway."

Jinx stared into his eyes for a few seconds—what felt like an eternity to Kid Flash—and then huffed. "Fine." She shook off his hand and stalked out the door.

Kid Flash had no trouble keeping up with her and maintained a running conversation for several blocks. Finally, as Jinx turned in to an alley with a mumbled, "I can take it from here," he held out the rose.

"You forgot this."

She stared at it and then at him before raising an eyebrow. "What is with you and the roses?"

"They're special. Just—"

"—like me," she finished. "Corny."

He had a mildly taken-aback look on his face. "Actually, I wasn't—"

"Yes, you were." She snatched the rose and proceeded to fumble with her messenger bag.

"I was going to say—"

He never got the chance to finish.

A wave of crackling white energy smashed into him and he buckled to his knees. Blue eyes wide with shock and betrayal, he stared up at Jinx.

She looked down at him with cold satisfaction, a sneer slipping over her features. One pale hand crushed the rose in its grasp and he watched in horrified shock as the bruised crimson petals drifted to the dirty street. "Stupid flower." Her other hand clutched a mechanical device.

Kid Flash couldn't speak. As much as he wanted to, he couldn't form the words his mind was screaming. _Jinx! No! What happened?_ He'd thought—he'd thought she'd had it with trying to impress Madame Rouge. Heck, he'd even thought she was considering leaving the Hive Five. "Why?" he choked out, finally regaining control of his vocal cords.

Jinx laughed loudly. "Poor Kid Flash. You weren't expecting this, were you?"

His shock was quickly fading, replaced by jolt after jolt of unadulterated pain. He belatedly recognized the device she held in her as a much newer, more compact, handset for the containment field in which he was now trapped. "Why?" he forced out through gritted teeth. "Jinx…"

Jinx's familiar form altered, morphing into another, equally familiar shape, and his heart dropped all the way to his toes. Or at least it would have, if he hadn't already been on his hands and knees. "Madame Rouge…"

"Ah, I am pleased you recognize me." Her sneer developed into a full-blown evil smirk. "You vill not get away this time, Kid Flash."

A jumble of thoughts raced through his pain-addled mind. Mingled with the frustration of being trapped by Madame Rouge again was a sudden, heartfelt gladness that it hadn't really been Jinx selling him out. That emotion was quickly drowned by a wave of anger that he had been tricked once again….and there was no one to save him this time.

* * *

During the trip to Madame Rouge's lair—a ride that had seemed to last forever—Kid Flash had alternated between berating himself for being such an idiot and trying to find a way out of the containment field. He didn't know where they were going, but that wouldn't matter much when he got free.

Now, hours later, he wasn't any closer to finding a way out than he had been before. It was ironic really, that the same technology used to control super powered criminals was being used to imprison him. Maybe someday he'd even find it funny.

His arms were shaking so badly now he doubted they would hold his weight much longer. The darkness was narrowing his vision; things were getting father and farther away. Kid Flash struggled to stay awake, but the darkness called him, offering a release from the pain. He lost conscious then. His arms gave out and pitched him forward face first towards the floor. With a painful thud, his body impacted the energy-covered stone surface, still twitching from the containment field around him.

_There is no escape for you this time, Kid Flash._

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Let me know what you think. Next chapter will be up soon.

Cheers!


	2. Chapter 2

_Disclaimer: _I don't own any of the characters from Teen Titans. I'm just playing in DC's sandbox.

_AN:_ I'm glad y'all are enjoying this so far--thank you so much for the reviews. :smiles:

Thanks go to Le Bibliothecaire and Red Lasbelin for beta-reading.

* * *

**Fool Me Once...**  
**Chapter 2**

* * *

Darkness slipped over Jump City as night fell. Streetlights, neon signs, and headlights lit up the city with a dazzling array of twinkling lights and colors. The frantic rush of day was over, leaving the streets free for people out for an evening stroll, late night diners, and…criminals.

Not that Jinx was sure she still fitted in the latter category.

She'd been wandering the streets for a while now, struggling with the conflicting thoughts and emotions roiling inside her. _Stupid Kid Flash,_ she thought angrily. _It's all his fault._ She had been quite comfortable with the way she was, thank you very much. She didn't need a speedy superhero to suddenly zip into her life and proclaim she could do better. What did he know?

It wasn't like they'd actually met before. He didn't know anything about her—_Other than the fact I draw unicorns_, she admitted grudgingly. Scowling, she hexed an empty soda can lying on the sidewalk. The pink bolt briefly illuminated her slender figure before sending the can flying into the distance. _There isn't anything wrong with my liking unicorns. I'm a girl, aren't I?_ _Why'd he have to act like it was such a surprise?_

Still scowling, it occurred to her that she might want to consider heading back now. Her fellow Hive Five members had been rather worried by her prolonged absences the past few weeks, though they hadn't dared to actually come out and say anything. She had told them she was taking some time off and that was that. Reflexively, Jinx glanced up, scanning the night sky for any trace of See-More's giant eye floating around. It would be just like him to come trailing after her regardless of her orders.

The fact that fresh red roses still appeared periodically during her absence bothered her teammates. They had taken great delight in disposing of the flowers and didn't seem to mind the fact that Jinx could have hexed them to the moon for entering her room without permission. She'd certainly thought about it, but realized that the fact that they couldn't stand Kid Flash temporarily outweighed their common sense.

Well, she couldn't fault them for that, seeing as how she couldn't stand him either.

_Liar_, a voice in her head whispered.

Jinx's eyes flashed pink and she clenched her fists. She wasn't going down that path. How _dare_ he waltz into her life and start suggesting she change! How dare he act so noble and attempt to convince her to switch sides! Furthermore—and worst of all, in her mind—how dare he act like he cared!

_No one cares!_

Seething, Jinx turned on her heel and stomped back the way she came, too angry to feel the chilly wind slapping her face. Three blocks down the road, her stomach reminded her that it hadn't been fed since that morning and she groaned in frustration. In all likelihood, by the time she got back to Hive Headquarters, everything would probably be gone. Mammoth couldn't help himself.

_Good thing the coffee shop is open late,_ she though wearily.

A few minutes later, she was standing at the counter ordering a bowl of vegetable soup and a mug of hot chocolate. Robbing restaurants was a heck of a lot harder than robbing armored vehicles; she didn't even bother trying. Especially not with a nagging voice in her head that sounded suspiciously like Kid Flash. She scowled again as she made her way to the back corner of the coffee shop, adjusting a purple sari over her pink hair. Why couldn't he just stay out of her head?

She looked up when a rather tired-looking waitress set the bowl of soup and mug of chocolate before her. "Here ya go, hon. Enjoy." Instead of leaving, the woman leaned towards Jinx and asked in a lighter voice, "So, did Kid Flash really walk you home this afternoon? How'd you meet him?" She winked at Jinx.

Jinx had been about to take a tentative mouthful of soup, but at the waitress's words, she froze, spoon halfway to her mouth. "What?"

The waitress chuckled. "Oh, come on, kid. You were in here for lunch, sitting right here," she nodded towards the table, "and he's suddenly walking in and sitting down at your table like he knows you."

For a split-second, Jinx's mind was completely blank. Then it began to work again, processing this odd information. Something was not right here…perhaps it would be best to play along and figure out what was going on. "Oh, right," she said awkwardly. "Yeah, sorry, it's been a long day."

"So did he walk you home?" The waitress kept one eye on Jinx and one on the door.

Jinx managed a nod. "Sure did. Then he had to take off again—something about a cat stuck up in a tree." She rolled her eyes and shrugged. "You know, normal superhero things." She dipped her spoon back into her soup and swirled it absently.

"That's sweet." The waitress looked like she would have said more, but the door jangled and she hurried off.

Though Jinx was still hungry, her appetite was completely gone. She stared down at the potatoes, carrots, tomatoes, celery, cabbage, green beans, corn, and lima beans all jumbled up in the fragrant broth in her bowl without really seeing them. _I had lunch here today and left with Kid Flash?_

How was that possible?

She'd deliberately avoided him for three weeks. For three lovely, crazy weeks, there had been no roses popping up (except back at the Hive Five building) and no sudden gusts of wind around her for no apparent reason. Going to ground for a while had been a good idea.

_Still…_ she thought, _since I actually paid for it...._ She ate the soup mechanically, still trying to figure out how it was possible for her to have been in the coffee shop with Kid Flash when she'd actually been blocks away holed up in the library drawing unicorns.

_I don't have a twin._ She cast a glance at the waitress. _And there can't be that many people in Jump City who have pink hair. _Frowning, she began to sip the hot chocolate. _Kid Flash wanted to walk me home?_

_Is he nuts?_

Well, the answer to that was obvious. Of _course_ he was nuts. He'd have to be nuts to be even remotely interested in her. _Don't go there, Jinx,_ she warned herself. _You've got a bad track record when it comes to liking the good guys._ Although…come to think of it…Cyborg had never actually tried to show her the benefits of being on the other side. Apparently, attempting something like that was another of Kid Flash's quirks.

Jinx drained the last of her chocolate and set the mug back down none too gently. She didn't want his sympathy or help—she didn't need it. _I'm bad luck. Good was never an option for me._ Why couldn't he just accept that and get on with his life? More importantly, why couldn't he just let her get on with _her _life? Just because she'd let him out of the containment field before Madame Rouge—

She froze. _Madame Rouge?_

Madame Rouge was a shape shifter. She couldn't duplicate powers, but she could turn herself into an exact copy of another individual. _I didn't leave with Kid Flash—Madame Rouge did!_

Her heart gave an odd little lurch. Obviously the woman was a little more bent on revenge than she'd thought. _But why disguise herself as me?_ she wondered, staring at the wall opposite her table. _Unless…_

_Unless she knows Kid Flash has a weakness where I'm concerned._

Jinx was suddenly quite glad she was sitting down. Her legs felt like they were made of jelly. Of _course_ Madame Rouge knew he seemed to have a soft spot for her. She must have used the guise before. Her mind flashed back to the last time she'd actually talked to Kid Flash—the night in the warehouse. Hadn't he asked her if she was really Jinx?

_So Madame Rouge has him. Big deal. Why do I care?_ She slouched in her chair, folding her arms across her chest.

_She'll kill him,_ her conscience argued. _Or she'll hand him over to someone else so _they_ can kill him._

Jinx considered that and found she didn't particularly like the thought of Kid Flash lying dead in an alley somewhere, those bright blue eyes of his closed forever…his red hair drenched with his own blood…

_Stop it, you're getting sentimental._

She scowled at her empty soup bowl and Madame Rouge's voice drifted through her mind. _You vill not feed him, you vill not speak to him, and I trust you are holding him in a Level 4 containment field? _

Her expression flickered. If the shapeshifter caught him off guard, it was unlikely he'd had a chance to run himself ragged. On the other hand, containment fields were rough on the body. Jinx bit her lip. It was close to nine p.m.—if he'd been captured around lunchtime, then he would have been in a containment field for at least eight hours. Madame Rouge would show no mercy.

_But do I care? He's just another one of those do-gooders out to make my life miserable._

The waitress returned for her empty dishes, but Jinx didn't notice. She was staring off into the distance, her calm exterior belying the war raging within. Yes, he'd made her life more difficult in many respects—even when they managed to avoid the Titans it was hard to successfully carry out a heist when someone breezed by and returned everything they'd taken—but he'd offered her a way out. Nobody else had ever done that before.

Kid Flash was cocky, arrogant, too sure of himself, and frustratingly persistent, not to mention irritatingly fast. One the other hand, a small part of her found his persistence flattering and she thought it amazing that he even bothered. So many others would have simply given her up as a lost cause.

That was where the real dilemma began.

Regardless of his statement that he worked alone, Jinx knew he must have allies and friends. Surely they'd be out looking for him. With them on the job, she didn't really need to worry about him, did she?

But, a small voice in her mind argued, would they actually find him? Would they know where to look? More importantly, would they even know he was gone until it was too late? Lost in thought, she drummed her fingers against the lacquered surface of the table.

"Miss? We're closing now."

Jinx came to herself then. "Right." With a nod to the waitress, she stepped outside into the night. Tugging her coat more closely about her body, she moved automatically towards the Hive Five building. Her mind quickly slipped back into planning mode, though she kept an ear out for anything out of the ordinary.

_If I save Kid Flash, am I turning my back on my world?_ She didn't think she wanted to be a part of his do-gooder world. He might accept her, but she could think of a handful of people—the Teen Titans chief among them—who probably wouldn't be as understanding. It wasn't time for burning bridges.

That question occupied her attention all the way back home. When she passed through the common area, where two copies of Billy Numerous sat playing a race car game with Gizmo, they noticed her almost immediately and breathed audible sighs of relief. Kid Wycked gave her a thumbs-up on his way to bed, she passed Mammoth in the kitchen, contemplating what to eat as a snack, and she came across See-More polishing his many eyeballs. He waved and returned to his task.

Once in her room, Jinx locked the door and sat down to finish thinking. She knew where the Brotherhood of Evil's main base was located—she had spent time digging up the information just in case she ever had the chance to make a grand entrance. Would Madame Rouge actually go to all the trouble of taking him there in a stasis field? If she had a vehicle stashed away somewhere nearby, it was entirely possible.

Jinx stared at the empty vase sitting on her mended dresser. If she was going to slip out and attempt a one-woman rescue mission, now was the time to do it. Her team members knew she didn't usually go back out after coming in unless they were on a heist—which they weren't. No one was likely to bother her until the next morning, by which time she planned to be back.

Slowly, Jinx folded her sari and laid it in a drawer. Then she took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and made her decision.

She wasn't going to rescue Kid Flash because she liked him—or because she agreed with him or wanted to join him…. She was going to rescue him because she couldn't stand the thought of Madame Rouge winning this game. _Especially when she makes herself look like me to do it,_ she thought grimly.

Grabbing a set of keys from their hiding place in the pillowcase of her bottom pillow, Jinx softly opened her door and slipped out. Gizmo had set the alarms as usual, but she was able to get past without any problems, and quickly made her way to the garage.

Selecting a rather plain four-door Gizmo had not yet tricked out with all sorts of neat gadgets, Jinx slipped into it and started the motor. As she pulled out into the road beyond their underground parking complex, a grim smile flitted across her face and her cat-like eyes gleamed brightly.

_I'm going to get in there, rescue Kid Flash, and be out before Madame Rouge even realizes what happened. That'll teach her to use me and underestimate me._

It was a pleasant thought.

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Hope y'all enjoyed! Don't forget to let me know what you thought. Reviews are brain food.


	3. Chapter 3

_Disclaimer:_ I don't own any of the characters from Teen Titans. I'm just playing in DC's sandbox.

_AN:_ Whee! Welcome back, everybody! Enjoy this next installment.

Thanks go to Le Bibliothecaire and Red Lasbelin for beta-reading, and to SushiChica for pointing out a couple of typos I missed the first time around.

* * *

**Fool Me Once...  
Chapter 3**

* * *

_The next time Kid Flash gets himself caught, he can stay that way._ Jinx shifted in her seat, holding on to the steering wheel with one hand. She'd been driving for four hours and was beginning to wonder if she'd made the right decision. _If I wasn't almost there, I think I'd turn around._

She didn't really mean it. Turning around would be tantamount to letting Madame Rouge win—and that just wasn't an option. Not when she'd used Jinx to further her plan.

The Brotherhood of Evil's headquarters were in the middle of nowhere, and from what Jinx remembered hearing, they had rather extensive security measures guarding their perimeters. This would call for a bit of finesse. _Not to mention_, she though wryly, as she parked the car behind a clump of overgrown bushes, _a nice little walk_.

There were no lights twinkling in this valley; she was met with complete darkness. The only things visible anywhere were thousands of stars studding the velvety night sky. Jinx smiled. She'd always been blessed with excellent night vision. _This should be a piece of cake._

It was just under a half a mile to the imposing fortress embedded in the side of a mountain. The trip was arduous, but the ground was flatter than it looked and she evaded the security measures with little difficulty. The tricky part was leaving them intact so their destruction didn't set off alarms, but she managed.

A snap of her fingers, the brief pink glow of a hex bolt, and she was through the front door. Jinx pressed herself up against the cold stone wall, hidden deep within the shadows cast by the dim lighting, and scanned the hall for any signs of life. Oddly—and most disappointingly—enough, the place looked like it had the same level of security the Hive Five building possessed. She resisted the urge to bury her face in her hands. _And I actually looked up to these people?_

Two seconds later, it hit her how hard it was going to be to locate Kid Flash in this base. It was huge. She craned her neck, staring up at the stone ceiling, which stretched a good fifteen feet above the floor.

_Okay, Jinx, think. If you had Kid Flash in your power, where would you put him?_ Her pink eyes narrowed in concentration. The dungeon, of course, or at least the closest thing to it. Madame Rouge might be vindictive enough to want him within sight at all times, but she rather doubted it. _She wouldn't put him where anyone could wander in and talk to him._

Slinking from shadow to shadow, constantly on the lookout for security cameras, Jinx made her way into the lower levels of the base. She could hear raucous laughter emanating from a hall—and presumably room of some sort—off to her right, but chose to ignore it. If they were all in there having a grand old time, so much the better.

The base, as it turned out, did have a dungeon. Row after row of cells lined several halls, each complete with a thick metal door and lock pad. She stopped short.

_I don't have time to search this whole place,_ she thought with growing irritation. Her eyes flashed and one of the locks burst into sparks. _Oops. _Just to make sure, she peered into the cell before passing on.

It was empty.

_Come on. If I was Madame Rouge, where would I put him? He can't escape, nobody knows I've got him, and we're in my top secret base._ A smirk slid over her face. _He's gotta be close._

After a few minutes of dashing from cell to cell, peering into the tiny windows, she found him. The containment field flickered brightly, but the body within was still. Jinx felt an invisible fist close around her heart. _I better not have come all this way for nothing._

She snapped her fingers and the lock on the door broke. Sparking slightly, it released the door, which Jinx slowly pushed open. Kid Flash was flat on the floor, obviously unconscious. She refused to consider the alternative.

"Kid Flash, can you hear me?" She circled around his outstretched body and knelt beside his head. "Kid Flash? I'm gonna get you out of here, don't worry."

Jinx sat back on her heels and considered the field thoughtfully. Madame Rouge probably had the controller glued to her body, which meant her chances of getting him out by destroying the controller were nil. She'd never actually tried to hex a containment field before. The fact that she was outside of it would help, but still….

She frowned, her eyes running over Kid Flash's pale face. His red hair hung limply over his forehead, and his eyes were closed. She leaned closer, her face dangerously near to the field, checking to make sure he was breathing. The barest movement of his chest informed her that he was. So far, so good. _I just hope this doesn't kill him. _

At any rate, it was worth a try. Jinx couldn't see any reason why her powers wouldn't work on it. Sure, it was a power-negating containment field, but she was outside it—and her powers had never exactly been conventional anyway. "You'd better not die on me," she threatened, just for good measure.

Kid Flash remained unmoving.

Jinx didn't bother talking to him anymore. It was so oddly…disappointing that he couldn't hear any of her threats, couldn't grin cockily and attempt to charmingly disarm her, or even make some pithy—and strangely insightful—comeback.

Her eyes flashed pink.

Nothing happened.

She tried again. Still, nothing.

Irritated, Jinx stared at the containment field. _I'm bad luck,_ she thought rebelliously. _I'm the sort of luck that causes containment fields to mysteriously disintegrate._

Closing her eyes, she pictured Kid Flash and the sparking field around him in her mind. She imagined pink tendrils of her power snaking towards it and weaving a glowing pink net. Reaching out one pale, slim hand, she made a convulsive squeezing motion. The pink net contracted around the containment field and the molecules comprising it were torn apart. The room went completely dark as the field died.

Jinx's cat-like eyes adjusted quickly, but she was already reaching for Kid Flash. Her fingers brushed his wavy hair before ghosting over the clammy skin of his face as she felt for his neck to make sure he had a pulse. It was weak, but it was there. A tiny thrill of exhilaration rushed through her.

_He's still alive._

A few seconds later, her eyes sufficiently adjusted to the dark, she saw the outline of his body and grabbed him by the arms. "I'm gonna get you out of here. And," she added darkly as an afterthought, "you owe me."

It was slow going. Kid Flash weighed less than she would have expected, given that he seemed to be pure muscle, but the boy wasn't exactly light. Jinx was just happy she was in fairly good physical condition. Otherwise, they would have never made it out of the base. As it was, they had a few close calls.

Madame Rouge herself passed them at one point, and Jinx just barely managed to drag Kid Flash's legs around the corner in time. Once she was convinced the coast was clear, Jinx gritted her teeth and continued to haul his unconscious body towards the door. She ignored the fine sheen of sweat coating her forehead.

_Yeah,_ she thought grumpily, _this is turning into a lot more work than I bargained for, but I can't leave him—I mean,_ she corrected herself hastily, _I can't let Madame Rouge win._

Jinx almost gave up when she looked out at the dark expanse of land she'd have to drag him across before they reached her vehicle. For a heartbeat, she considered leaving him under a tree to wonder how he got out when he woke up, but she dismissed the idea immediately. There was no guarantee Madame Rouge and her cohorts wouldn't stumble across him once they realized his cell was empty. True, they'd probably think he'd just zipped off, but they'd run a perimeter check just in case. If he didn't wake up in time, all her efforts would be in vain.

She switched her grasp to his ankles and resumed dragging him along. It was back-breaking work and her muscles were already burning from hauling him out of the base, but she persisted. All the same, she took a perverse joy in all the bumps and bruises he was going to have as souveigners of this little adventure.

Jinx was three-quarters of the way to her car when she became aware of a commotion going on behind them. Casting a glance over her shoulder, she was not terribly surprised to see the base exploding with activity. The knowledge sent a fresh wave of adrenaline through her body and spurred her onward. _I stole him right out from under their noses!_

Getting Kid Flash's inert form into the passenger seat proved to be even more difficult than getting him up the stairs in the base. Her tired, aching muscles protested loudly, but she ignored them. After a few minutes of struggling, she managed to get him into the car and slammed the door gratefully.

All things considered, this was probably her very best heist. _I stole Kid Flash!_ The thought filled her with an almost hysterical glee and she was cackling to herself as she started the car and drove back to the main highway.

Despite herself, Jinx found herself glancing over at Kid Flash frequently. He slept through the first and second hours of their trip back to Jump City without moving. His breathing, however, was almost back to normal.

Halfway through the third hour, it occurred to her that he was really going to need something to eat when he woke. Her money supply wasn't much at the moment, but—and the thought amused her greatly—being a superhero, he'd probably insist on reimbursing her. Jinx had to fight a giddy smile.

She stopped at a Wal-Mart with a gas station and filled up before driving over to the parking lot. She turned the engine off, pocketed the keys, and unbuckled her seat belt. Her hand was on the door handle when she hesitated. Almost of their own accord, her eyes turned to Kid Flash, who was still asleep, his red hair plastered to the passenger window. "After all the trouble I've been through," she warned his unconscious figure, "You better be here when I get back."

A soft snore was her only answer.

This early in the morning, the store was mostly empty. As much as she wanted to dash through and grab everything she thought they'd need, the cautious part of her knew it was a good way to draw attention to herself. Her pink hair and eyes drew enough attention as it was, though, oddly enough, she seemed to fit right in with the eclectic bunch currently wandering the aisles.

The cashier who checked her items out was barely awake. His eyes were so heavy Jinx doubted he could see her at all—which wasn't necessarily a bad thing, she reminded herself. The temptation to just grab her things and walk right past him became stronger, but she pushed it away. It wouldn't do to cause a ruckus right after spiriting Kid Flash out of Madame Rouge's clutches. Dead giveaway, that.

As she pushed the cart through the automatic doors, Jinx contemplated ditching it and carrying everything to the car by herself. The cart was in dire need of a little TLC. Each wheel scraped the ground, protesting vociferously about being forced to move. The sound echoed through the silent parking lot and set her teeth on edge. She persisted, well aware that if for some reason she was jumped, it would be easier to fight without carrying half the grocery store in her arms.

The hair on the back of her neck was pricking uncomfortably by the time she reached the car. Hastily, she stowed the bags in the back seat. Kid Flash, she noticed with a feeling of relief, was still there. Still sound asleep.

On the heels of her relief came a wave of irritation and she huffed. "Just how long is he going to sleep anyway? Ugh!" Slightly disgruntled, she climbed back into the car and started the engine. Before she pulled out of the parking lot, however, she glanced over her shoulder into the backseat, a thoughtful expression on her face.

Three minutes later, they were cruising down the highway and she was happily munching on a Hostess cupcake. She'd stuck the box on the dashboard, clearly on her side of the car, just in case Kid Flash woke up and saw them before he found out there was more food. Reaching for another, she undid the wrapping, eyes flicking back and forth from the road. She was just about to take a bite when a low, slightly groggy voice interrupted her concentration.

"Jinx?"

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:munches happily on brain food: I really hope y'all enjoyed--I had so much fun writing this chapter. Don't forget to review!


	4. Chapter 4

_Disclaimer:_ I don't own any of the characters from Teen Titans. I'm just playing in DC's sandbox.

_AN:_ Welcome back, everybody! Thank you so much for all the lovely reviews—they've really been encouraging. I hope y'all enjoy this last chapter. It's my favorite.

Thanks go to Le Bibliothecaire and Red Lasbelin for beta-reading. Also, I'd like to thank all of you for reading. :smiles:

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**Fool Me Once...  
Chapter 4**

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It felt like he was surfacing from a pool of fuzzy darkness.

Kid Flash gradually woke, cognizant of nothing but the fact that he must have been dreaming about that horrible pain. It was obviously gone. While he couldn't remember the particulars of the dream, he was just happy his subconscious had ceased torturing him. A faint, grateful smile slipped over his face and he nuzzled into his pillow, which was oddly shaped and rather hard…just like a car door, come to think of it…

And then everything crashed back into his mind.

_Jinx._

_The containment field._

_Madame Rouge_

_Jinx._

_Pain._

_Slipping into unconsciousness._

Kid Flash froze. _The last thing I remember is hitting the floor in that containment field. What happened? Where am I?_ He felt vibrations—which meant he was in a car headed…somewhere. _Am I paralyzed or something?_ he thought, working through a wave of panic. He wiggled one booted foot. _No, not paralyzed._

Cautiously, he opened one eye. For a few seconds, what he saw didn't register. When it did, both his blue eyes widened with shock and astonishment. He was in a car being driven by _Jinx_, of all people, and she was sitting there getting ready to eat a cupcake like driving an unconscious superhero around in the dark was something she did every day.

It took a conscious effort to keep his mouth from falling open. He wasn't sure of anything anymore. If this was an elaborate ruse, it did seem a little peculiar that Madame Rouge would be the cupcake type, but…he'd seen stranger things. What he didn't understand was why, if this was Madame Rouge again, he wasn't in a containment field. _I should be dead._

"Jinx?"

Her reaction was comical. It would have been funnier if he'd had the energy to laugh, but he was still far too drained.

Startled, Jinx dropped the cupcake into her lap. Kid Flash reached for it, but he was too tired to move at his usual speed and he missed. _I'm so tired. And_, he realized with an internal groan, _awfully hungry_.

Jinx ignored the cupcake for the time being, choosing instead to fix him with a glare. "About time you woke up."

He smiled at her. "What can I say? We superheroes need our beauty sleep."

She rolled her eyes and retrieved the cupcake. Kid Flash's stomach growled loudly and he blushed. Through his embarrassment, he could have sworn he saw one corner of her mouth twitch.

She motioned with the cupcake to the back seat. "There's a bunch of stuff back there. And don't worry—I paid for it." She cast him a mock-serious look. "I expect full reimbursement, of course."

Kid Flash stared at her a moment, debating whether or not he should trust her. Madame Rouge had burned him badly, and while he couldn't see any reason for her to have released him and then stayed with him, knowing he was probably going to be suspicious, it wouldn't hurt to be suspicious. He opened his mouth to say something, but Jinx beat him to it.

"You're probably wondering if I'm Madame Rouge, aren't you?"

He tilted his head to one side. "Can't say the thought didn't cross my mind."

Jinx tossed him her cupcake, which she hadn't yet bitten into and he caught it reflexively. One eyebrow rose as he looked from her to the cupcake. "Is the fact that you gave up chocolate supposed to convince me of anything? Because I can see Ma—"

Jinx's eyes flashed and the cupcake exploded in his face, showering him with crumbs and cream filling. He gave her a wry glance as he wiped his face. "You really like doing that, don't you?"

She smirked. "Convinced?"

Kid Flash cracked the window and dumped out the cupcake remains. "Mostly." He flicked crumbs off his shoulder. "Madame Rouge could have rigged a cupcake to blow, but there's no way she could duplicate the way your eyes light up." He paused, then asked, "Why—"

Jinx cut him off. "Eat," she commanded. "You look like you're going to pass out again and I can't wait another four hours for you to wake up." She gave him a pointed glare before turning her attention back to the road.

Kid Flash's muscles all felt like they'd turned to mush but he smiled anyway and reached for the grocery bags behind his seat.

"And before you ask," Jinx said irritably, reaching for another cupcake. "Yes, there's mustard."

He laughed then and Jinx didn't need light to know that his bright blue eyes were twinkling at her. Her grip on the steering wheel tightened. _If he says one word…_ she thought mutinously.

Fortunately, Kid Flash's rumbling stomach took precedence over any witty—or half-witty, as far as Jinx was concerned—comebacks he might otherwise have made. It took him less than five minutes to demolish a good portion of what she'd bought and she suspected it would have been gone faster if he hadn't been so exhausted.

Finally, he leaned back in his seat with a small sigh. "Thanks."

Jinx was silent, debating whether or not it was ethical to accept a thank you from him, even though he'd obviously meant it for the food.

Kid Flash smirked. "Awfully quiet today, aren't you?"

"…"

"Why'd you bust me out?" His voice was quiet, but a hint of smugness crept through. "Got a crush on me? It's okay if you do." He held a hand up to forestall argument, "Because—"

Jinx growled and the back of his seat dropped down to the floor. His head impacted it with a thud.

"You know…" His voice drifted up from the floor, unperturbed. "Acts of violence like this could be taken as extreme flirting."

Knuckles white, Jinx swerved to the far right side of the road and pulled over. "I should have just left you there!" she snapped.

Kid Flash raised his seat up again. When he spoke, there was no trace of humor in his voice. "Why didn't you then?" She stared at him and he continued, "I mean, it's not like anybody _knows_ what happened to me." He swallowed. "I'd probably be dead if you hadn't saved me, Jinx, and what I—what I'd really like to know is why?"

Jinx's eyes were narrowed at him, but the fire gradually leaked out of her. "Madame Rouge caught you by pretending to be me." One white hand clenched into a fist. "I couldn't let her get away with it." She didn't realize he was now munching on one of her cupcakes until he tossed her one. "Hey!"

He quickly changed the subject. "How did you find—I mean—" He shook his head. "How did you even learn she'd gotten me?" A few cars whizzed by and he admired the slim curves and planes of Jinx's face as the headlights' illumination slid past them.

Jinx shrugged. "I go to that coffee shop when I can't stand to be around—" she stopped and glared at him. "I go there sometimes—I used to anyway." Her glare deepened. "Now I have to find another restaurant."

"Why? Because of Madame Rouge?"

"And you."

He shook his head. "Aww, you don't mean that."

She snorted. "You have no idea. I don't need you to start up with the roses again. And I don't want that creepy feeling of being watched I had all the time either."

"Is that why you disappeared? Because you didn't like the roses?" His voice was overly casual. "You could have just said something."

"…"

"What?"

Jinx folded her arms across her chest. "Like you'd get the point?"

"Hey, I thought you liked them!" He looked adorably confused.

"I do!" she shouted, before smacking her forehead as she realized he'd tricked her into revealing more than she had intended yet again. "Ugh, why do I even bother?"

"So, you went to this coffee shop," he prodded, changing the subject before she decided to hex him again.

"…and the waitress mentioned you and that I'd already been there. Madame Rouge is the only person who could impersonate me. And you!" She twisted in her seat and jabbed a finger at him. "_You_ are the only person who'd actually fall for that!"

Hours earlier, he'd been thinking the same thing, but now Kid Flash allowed his eyebrows to disappear into his hairline. "What, like the Hive Five would know the difference either?"

"Of course they wouldn't—" Jinx stopped short. "Good point," she admitted grudgingly. She scowled. "That doesn't change the fact that you let your guard down way too often."

He shrugged, watching her.

"I'm a villainess, for crying out loud! Did you think I wasn't capable of dealing with you on my own? Did you just dismiss me—Madame Rouge as me, I mean—as harmless?"

Kid Flash eyed her with mounting alarm. One minute she was criticizing him for letting his guard down and the next all but accusing him of being chauvinistic. "Wait a minute-" he started, waving his hands to get her attention. "It was stupid of me to be so trusting, but I didn't think you'd try to hurt me," he blurted out.

Jinx stared at him, her cat-like eyes reflecting the headlights of the cars zooming past them. "What," she asked finally, a scornful tone in her voice, "gave you that idea? Is it because you think I can do better?"

"Yes."

She laughed derisively. "Were you always this delusional or did that containment field screw you up further?"

Kid Flash leaned towards her. "Jinx, like it or not, the fact that you drove all the way out to wherever I was, tracked me down, and rescued me says a lot about you." There was a decidedly amused tone in his voice now that Jinx wasn't altogether convinced she liked. "You could have just let it go. You could have let _me_ go."

Jinx saw the opening in his argument and pounced on it. "And let Madame Rouge win? I don't think so!" She started the engine and merged into traffic.

Kid Flash watched her for a few minutes, a smile playing around the corners of his lips. _Just keep telling yourself that, Jinx._

Once they reached the outskirts of Jump City, Jinx pulled over again. "You can let yourself out here," she said stiffly, her eyes fixed straight ahead.

He didn't move.

"Or," she continued idly, "I can hex you out."

"My heroine," he teased, unbuckling his seatbelt, which he belatedly realized she must have put on him when she wrestled him into the car. Jinx scowled at him and he tripped climbing out of the car. "Ow. Thanks a lot, Jinx."

She sniffed and prepared to drive away, but before she could pull out, her car door stood wide open and Kid Flash was there, dangling a rose in front of her face. She opened her mouth to tell him off, but the completely serious look on his face silenced her.

"I meant it, Jinx. Thank you. I don't know if I'd still be alive if it hadn't been for you."

Jinx took the rose grudgingly, uncomfortable with the intense look in his eyes. "Maybe you'll leave me alone now," she shot back. "After all, if you can't be sure I'm really me…"

Kid Flash actually have the nerve to smirk at her. "Oh, I think I'll be able to tell." Before she could so much as blink, his lips were on hers in a gentle kiss.

Jinx's eyes went wide with surprise, and then threatened to slip closed. _Can't have that._

The next instant, Kid Flash was sprawled incongruously on the pavement, his red hair askew. Jinx held both hands in front of her, eyes still flashing pink.

Kid Flash picked himself up with a chuckle. "See, told ya. Madame Rouge'll never be able to pull that one off."

Jinx closed her eyes and counted to five. When she opened them, he was still standing there, watching her, and she pinched the bridge of her nose. "Just, go away now, will you? Go do superhero things—or whatever it is you do."

Kid Flash sketched a bow. "As you wish, milady." He grinned at her and was gone.

With a shake of her head, Jinx started up the car. She glanced over at the rose and was not surprised in the least to see two twenties lying beside it with a note that read:

_Thanks, Jinx. See you around. _

Unable to resist a tiny smile, she drove home.

_Fin_

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I hope y'all have enjoyed reading this fic as much as I enjoyed writing it. Thanks again for reading and reviewing.

Until next time.

Cheers!


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